Snow and ice melting machine



May 31, 1949.

A. FIDUCCIA SNOW AND ICE MELTING MACHINE 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Jan. 7, 1948 INVENTOR HA/THO/VVF/JUCF/fi ATTO R N EY May 31, 1949. A. FIDUCCIA S NOW AND ICE MELTING MACHINE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Jan. '7, 1948 INVENTOR IQ/VTHO/VJ/F/UUCC/Ig ATTORN EY Patented May 31, 1949 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 3 Claims.

This invention relates to snow and ice melting machines in general.

Among the objects of the present invention, it is aimed to provide an improved snow and ice melting machine for use in cleaning streets and the like, characterized by a heating mechanism not only for melting the snow and ice fed thereto, but also to heat the water resulting from the snow and ice so as to maintain the same in a liquid state ready to be discharged into a sewerage conduit or the like.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide a heating medium which will produce an extended flame to be directed at a temporary ice and snow holder and which can be directed into a flue or conduit passing through the water receivin chamber below the upper level of the water so received to maintain the water ata low enough temperature to facilitate its discharge into a sewerage conduit or other waste water receiver.

These and other features, capabilities and advantages of the present invention will appear from the subjoined detail description ,ofspecific embodiments thereof illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Fig. l is a plan View. 1

Fig. 2 is a section on the line ?.--2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a section on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1.

Fig. l is a side view enlarged and partly in section of a burner unit.

Fig. 5 is a diminished fragmental cross section showing another type of trough.

In the embodiment shown there are illustrated two supporting U-beams l and 2 having supported thereon a platform 3, which beams l and 2 and platform 3 may be part of a truck or the like conveyance or other support. On this platform there is mounted a tank 4 having a base 5, two end walls 6 and l and two side walls 8 and 9.

Preferably in the rear end wall 6 there are provided two openings, one opening Ill adjacent the base 5, and the other opening ll preferably a little below the middle of the tank 4. The opening I is preferably provided with the closure cap 12, normally closed but available to be opened in order to drain the tank 4 and clean the same, since frequently the snow and ice removed from the street may have mixed with it refuse, branches of trees and the like which may drop into the tank with the water resulting from melting the snow and ice as hereinafter to be described. The opening II in turn is provided with a nozzle l3 to receive the coupling l of the hose M. The opening H is located at a predetermined level of the waste water in the tank 4 to act as an overflow. The hose M may be of any suitable length and preferably flexible to enable the attendant to direct the overflow to the inlet of a sewer or other waste water receiver.

For receiving the snow and ice to be melted and disposed of as water, there is provided a hopper l6 formed by the downwardly and inwardly inclined walls ll, l8, l9 and 20. The inner lower ends of the walls l1, I8, [9 and 2B in the present instance have inwardly extendin flanges 2| to serve as supports for the rectangular angle iron frame 22 of the trough 23, preferably composed of a suitable foraminous material or wire mesh. This trough 23 in the present instance has triangular wire mesh end walls 24 and 25 and two inclined side walls 26 and 2'! connected to the end walls and connected to one another at their lower adjacent ends, to form a substantially triangular trough in cross-section, see Fig. 3.

Above the level of the water in the tank 4, and approximately in alinement with the trough 23, the rear wall is provided with a rectangular opening 28, see Fig. 3, to facilitate inspection, insertion and removal of the trough 23 and also to provide an adequate inlet for air to facilitate combustion.

The front wall 1, on the other hand, preferably has a narrower opening at the upper end, such as the opening 29, to serve as a discharge for products of combustion, as an instance.

The side walls 8 and 9 are also each provided with an elongated opening, see the openings 30 and 3! substantially in alinement with the trough 23 to serve not only as inlets for air to supplement the air supply passing through the opening 28, but also to clear the burner units 32 and 33 mounted on the platforms 34 and 35, respectively.

The platforms 3 4 and 35 are, as shown in Fig. 3, suitably secured to the upper edges of the wall portions 8 and 9 at the lower ends of the openings 30 and 3|, respectively. These platforms 34 and 35 preferably extend a short distance into the tank 4.

The burner units 32 and 33, see Fig. 4, each consist essentially of a pan 36, an outer integral housing element 31 secured to the pan 36 and extending upwardly therefrom, a forwardly extending cylindrical perforated extension 38 connected to the housing element 31, a burner nozzle 39 disposed at the outer entrance end of the extension 38 and a fuel supply conduit 40 connected to the control valve 4|. The conduit 40 preferably has a portion 42 extending from the valve 4| into the housing 31 and connected to the lower end of the platform or bracket 43 connectmounted upon the platform 43.

are exposed,

3 ed to the housing 31. From the platform 43 the conduit 40 extends downwardly into the pan 33, see the portion 44, and then back up into the cylindrical extension 38 in the form of a coil 45 and from the coil portion 45 to the nozzle 39. The nozzle 39 preferably, as shown in Fig. 4, is The pans 36 preferably have ears 46 extending from the sides thereof to receive the wing nuts and bolts 41 which pass through the slots 28 in the platforms 34 and 35 whereby the burner units 32 and 33 may be adjusted relative to the trough 23. Preferably the platforms as and 35 are provided with the conduits 49 and 53, respectively, secured to the lower faces thereof, one end of-the conduit 49 being connected by the flexible conduit with the discharge end 52 of the fuel supply tank 53 and the conduit 53 being connected by the flexible conduit 54 with the discharge end 55 of the fuel tank 56. The conduits 49 and 50 in turn are provided with outlets to receive the flexible conduits Bl which in turn are connected to the valves 4| of the burner units 32 and 33. The conduit 49 is also provided with a connection for the flexible conduit 58 connected to thevalve 59 of the burner unit 63 mounted on the platform 6|, and in turn the conduit 53 is provided with a connection for the flexible conduit 62 which is connected to the valve 63 of the burner unit 64 mounted on the platform 65. The burner units 60 and 64 are substantially identical to the burner units 32 and 33, and therefore the description of the burner unit illustrated in Fig.

4 will be relied upon to suffice as a description of the burner units 63 and 64.

The burner units 32 and 33 are so positioned on the platforms, 34 and 35 that the flames produced by the nozzles 39 thereof will extend to and be directed at, andthrough, the trough 23 at a level above the lower end thereof.

In this way the entire mesh of the trough 23 will be heated, the lower end of the trough 23 in part by conduction.

The burners 60 and B4, on the other hand, are

positioned to direct the flames produced by their nozzles 33 into the conduits 63 and 61, respectively. The conduit 63 extends across the rear end of the tank 4 below the upper level of the water, and then extends forwardly to the upward extension 68. The conduit 3?, on the other hand,

-extends across the tank 4 at the rear end thereof at a level slightly below the conduit 65, and

then forwardly to the upward extension 39. The upper ends of the upward extensions 68 and 69 that is open, and positioned in alinement with the lower end of the front opening 29 in the wall I of the tank 4, so that the hot air and gas generated by the flames directed into the conduits 65 and 61 will escape from the up- .perxends of the extensions 33 and 59 through the opening 29 into the atmosphere.

In this way one and the same fuel medium can be used for generating heat in the conduits '66 and B'Ito maintain the waterin the tank 4 at least, above freezing where it can readily be discharged through the over-flow pipe 114 and preferablyhigh enough to melt any snow that might drop through the trough 23, and also supply the fuel for the flames which are directed by'the burner units 32 and 33 at the inclined mesh walls 26 and 2'! of the trough 23.

Excellent results have been achieved when the fuel-in the fuel tanks 53 and 56 was ordinary kerosene fuel compressed by thehand controls valves M are opened and the initial gas escaping fromthe nozzles 33 willbe automatically ignited from the flame of the burning kerosene 'in the pans 36.

Excellent results have also been achieved when the burner units 32 are staggered relative to the burner units ,33, see the arrangement in Fig. 1, and also when the metal of the wire mesh of the trough '23 was composed of case hardened steel metal which would admirably withstand the heat without deterioration of the metal, so

long as care was exercised to see that the trough '23 was filled-with snow or ice before the gas issuing from the nozzles 39 was ignited. The flames issuing from the nozzles 39, both of the burner units 32 and 33, as well as of the burner units 60 and 64 gave excellent result when the pressure was sufficient to produce a flame of "about twenty-four inches in length. Under some circumstances these flames could be increased to lengths of forty-two inches, depending upon the temperature, with excellent results. Since the width of the tanks from wall 8 to wall 9 is about forty-eight inches, the staggered relation, of course, will enable the flames from the two sets of burner'units 32 and 33 effectively to be distributed the full length of the trough 23, and by-virtue of the length of the flames effectively cross the trough 23. The location of the point of contact'of the flames from the burner units 32 and 33 on the trough 23 about midway between the lower apex of the trough 23 and the frame 22 is also of value in preserving the metal from deterioration, the heat, according to heat only momentarily accumulated in the apex, re-

ducing the temperature in the metal sufficiently to preserve it from injury. a

It .will also be noticed that the hopper formed. by the walls l1, l8, l9 and 23 is sufficiently deep, about thirty-inches, sothat it may receive a substantial load for effective and expeditious removal of snow and ice when a conveyor or the like is'used to feed thesnow and ice to the hopper. The upper edges'of the walls 6, l, 3 and 9 of the tank towhich the walls l1, l8, l9 and 23 of the hopper are connected also support the flange extension 12. This flange extension 12 surrounds the upper edge of the hopper and tank and extends sufiiciently outward at least to cover the burner units 32 and.33, in part to protect the burner units from snow and ice during inclement weather. Furthermore, to more effectively protectthe same, the edges of the side portions of the flange extension 12 have pivotally connected thereto the extended panels 13 and 14 by the hinges 15 and 16, respectively, and the lower edges of the panels 13 and 14 in turn have hingedly connected thereto the secondary panels 17 and 18, respectively, by thehinges 19 and 80, respectively. These secondary panels H and 78 are recessed at 8| and 82, respectively, to clear the conduits '40. I

It is, of course, obvious that the level of the I water in the .tankJ4 must be maintained below the burner units 32 and 33 so that these burner units may not be extinguished by the water overflowing onto the same.

While flames of various intensity may be used it may be noted that excellent results have been achieved when these flames have an intensity of about 2000 B. t. u. per minute.

In the embodiment shown in Fig. 5, the side and end walls 83 of the hopper are considerably shorter than the side and end Walls I1, l8, l9 and 20 of the hopper illustrated in Figs. 2 and 3, and the trough 84 is considerably deeper as compared to the trough 23 of the first embodiment.

It is obvious that various changes and modifications may be made to the details of construc tion without departing from the general spirit of the invention as set forth in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. The combination of a tank having a water containing lower section. a hopper secured to the upper end of said tank to receive snow and/ or ice, a wire mesh trough at the lower end of said hopper, a plurality of horizontally arranged burners for directing flames at said trough, conduits located in said lower section of the tank below the water level, and burners in communication with the entrance ends of said conduits to direct flames into the same, there being an opening adjacent the upper end of said tank, the outlet ends of said conduits being disposed above the water level and adjacent the opening in the upper end of said tank to facilitate discharging gases of combustion and hot air therethrough, the trough being triangular in cross section with the apex at the bottom and disposed below the level of the flames of said horizontally arranged burners.

2. The combination of a tank having a water containing lower section, a hopper secured to the upper end of said tank to receive snow and/or ice, a wire mesh trough at the lower end of said hopper, a plurality of horizontally arranged burners for directing flames at said trough, conduits located in said lower section of the tank below the water level, and burners in communication with the entrance ends of said conduits to direct flames into the same, there being an opening adjacent the upper end of said tank, the outlet ends of said conduits being disposed above the water level and adjacent the opening in the upper end of said tank to facilitate discharging gases of combustion and hot air therethrough, horizontally extending flanges extending outwardly from the upper edges of said hopper over said horizontally arranged burners, and panels hingedly connected to said flanges efiectively to cover said burners during inclement weather.

3. The combination of a tank having a water receiving lower section, a hopper secured to the upper end of said tank to receive snow and/or ice, a wire mesh trough at the lower end of said hopper, and a plurality of horizontally arranged burners for directing flames at said trough, the trough being triangular in cross section with the apex at the bottom and disposed below the level of the flames of said horizontally arranged burners but above the level of the water in said water receiving lower section.

ANTHONY FIDUCCIA.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the iiie of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 281,500 I-Iannan Juy 17, 1883 428,670 Ferrell May 27, 1890 614,198 Boorman et a1. Nov. 15, 1898 1,117,985 Denemark Nov. 24, 1914 1,204,400 Brauninger Nov. 14, 1916 1,349,853 Peden Aug. 17, 1920 

